Love To Go
by Twinkle.STARRE
Summary: She rejected him. "I’m not interested in a guy who apparently doesn’t care enough about his education and future and barely passes all his courses every semester because he’s not making the effort to do better.” He'll do anything to make her take it back!
1. Chapter 1

**Love to Go**

*** ~ Chapter 1 ~ ***

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"Mr. Li, can you please read the next paragraph for us, please?" Terada-sensei asked, not looking up from the page. He was obviously expecting his student to be paying attention. How wrong. The entire class sat in silence for a few seconds, awaiting the voice of Syaoran Li to continue reading from their history textbook. A few more seconds ticked by, and a few heads started to turn back, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on.

Syaoran's head of soft chocolate brown hair was rested upon his two strong arms, his face completely hidden. His gentle snoring, which was audibly covered by the last student reading aloud, could now be heard. A few students giggled to themselves, yet, was tactful enough not to burst out laughing.

"Syaoran Li!" Terada-sensei's voice boomed, ceasing all the giggles and smirks. Everyone abruptly turned back around in their seats to face the front of the class. Everyone except Syaoran, that is. But he did hear his name being called, and not in a friendly tone of voice. His sleepy eyes opened and his head lifted up from his arms.

_Oh, shit,_ he thought, looking at the history book that he had been napping on a few seconds ago. The page was creased where his arms had been compressing. Sitting up straighter in his seat, Syaoran surreptitiously unfolded the crease and tried his best to smooth it out, all the while glancing at the page widely with his bright hazel eyes to locate where the last student had left off. _I have __**got**__ to stop staying up late at night._

"Page one sixty four, paragraph seven," the voice of Eriol Hiirazigawa whispered beside him, a smirk evidently plastered on his face. Syaoran glared at his friend, but was grateful for his help. Clearing his throat, he got ready to read, but a knock on the classroom door interrupted.

"Excuse me," a young man from another class said politely, yet coolly, "I'm Kai Motamiya from the First Tier class. My classmate, Sakura Kinomoto, and I are here to make an announcement about the upcoming school dance." He gestured to a pretty young woman with long auburn-red hair and forest green eyes, standing in their school's uniform.

"Ah, yes, Kai, come on in," Terada-sensei greeted with warmth. But then again, everyone was nice to First Tier students and their teacher. First Tier class consisted of the most brilliant in the school – the geniuses that were said to have the brightest of all futures ahead of them in life. Turning back to Syaoran, Terada-sensei's expression darkened. "We'll talk about your sleeping in class behaviour later, Mr. Li."

Syaoran sunk slightly in his seat. _Gee, embarrass me in front of these two people, why don't you, sensei?_

Kai and the girl strolled into the classroom and faced the students confidently, as if they do this all the time.

"As you all should probably know by now, the annual Winter Festival Dance is coming up. As usual, tickets will be on sale during lunch outside the cafeteria. Students from First Tier will be running the booth, and all proceeds go towards the school." Kai said smoothly, his grey-blue eyes scanned the faces of the students.

"The dance will be on the last day before winter vacation, at six thirty at night, in the school gym. As per usual, the First Tier class and the Dance Committee will collaborate to run this dance, but of course, all students are entitled to giving their opinions and feedbacks if they have any," Sakura carried on from where Kai left off without missing a beat, and Syaoran wondered if their coordination was practiced.

"Are there any questions?" Kai asked. Nobody raised a hand. All the girls were too busy blushing and ogling over Kai, and why shouldn't they? Being in First Tier, he was definitely a genius, and his ebony hair and grey-blue eyes only added to his attractiveness to the female population of Tomoeda Secondary. It was the most obvious fact that Kai Motamiya was the most respected male student in this entire school, and that Sakura Kinomoto was his counterpart.

Syaoran could see Eriol's gaze from the corner of his hazel eyes, as if challenging him to raise his and ask a question.

_Come on. This is your chance. Show her that you're not apathetic. That you care about the important stuff around this school! Impress her! Let her know that just because you're not in First Tier, you're not __**stupid**__._

And before he could control it, Syaoran raised his hand. Kai pretended not to notice. As usual, he doesn't care about anything Syaoran, or anyone else from the Third Tier class for that matter, had to say. Sakura was different though.

"Yes?" she acknowledged Syaoran's hand.

"I want to ask," Syaoran spoke, and paused to make sure that his voice wasn't shaking as he continued, "how come the money made from the dances always go towards stuff the First Tier class wants? What about the needs of the rest of the student population?"

Silence.

A few students turned back around in their seat to stare at him like they did when he didn't reply to Terada-sensei's request of him to read the next paragraph earlier. Except this time, their mouths were hung open in shock that Syaoran Li, practically a nobody from Third Tier, had the nerve to question the authority of the two most intelligent students in the history of the school.

"What's your name?" Kai narrowed his eyes at Syaoran.

"He's Syaoran Li," Sakura informed her partner.

_She knows my name!_ Syaoran thought as his heart flipped over in joy. _Well, duh,_ a voice in his chimed, _you two have been living across the street from each other for the past seven years._

"Well, Li," Kai said, his eyes still narrowed. "Contrary to your belief, the money made from school events and functions do not go towards the needs of First Tier. We know what the student population requires, and we have every intent to satisfy those requirements." Kai obviously expected Syaoran to shut up after that explanation. No such luck.

"Um, yeah, that's great and everything, but how come we don't get a say in what we think we require?" Syaoran prompted on.

Kai had a reply for this too. "We find that students tend to look at the short term goals, whereas First Tier students can look at the bigger picture and have a better idea of what is needed around the school. Furthermore – "

"Are you calling the rest of us stupid and would spend the money on crap?" Syaoran interrupted. Everyone in the room flinched except for Kai, Sakura, and Syaoran.

"You said it," Kai smiled arrogantly. "I didn't."

"Your opinions are of great value, of course," Sakura hastily ensured, offering a small smile at Syaoran's direction. "If there are any issues you feel strongly about, you can drop it off at the suggestion box outside the office. We must be going now, we still have to make the announcement in the Fourth and Fifth Tier classes."

She grabbed Kai by the arm, and pulled him out of the classroom, as if she sensed that a full-blown argument would take place if she didn't.

"Nice going, Li," a few students smirked in a taunting manner.

Syaoran groaned silently to himself. _What a way to make a fool out of myself in front of the girl I've been in love with for the past three years._

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"I didn't think it was _that_ bad," Eriol laughed, referring to the incident in the classroom earlier.

"I should have just kept my mouth shut." Syaoran grumbled. The fried chicken on his lunch tray suddenly didn't look so appetizing anymore. He flicked a glance over at the booth outside the doorway of the school cafeteria. Sakura Kinomoto, Kai Motamiya, and Naoko Yanagisawa were selling tickets to the upcoming Winter Festival Dance.

"Well, at least now you know that Sakura Kinomoto knows your name!" Takashi Yamazaki grinned. "It's not a total lost. Heck, it's probably the best that you can do!"

Syaoran glared at his friend. "What is that supposed to mean?!"

"Well," Takashi pondered, "think about it, Syaoran buddy. She's Sakura Kinomoto. From First Tier. Where all the intelligent people are. She's top of the year, every year. She gets better grades than _Kai. _She's pretty. Why would she notice you? This silly crush of yours, just give it up."

"It's _not_ just a silly crush!" Syaoran said, banging the lunch table and gaining the attention of a few nearby students. "And what's wrong with me?!"

"Nothing," Eriol chimed in, "but if you're a girl, whom would you pick? Kai Motamiya, one of the biggest heartthrob in the school with a straight A average, or…you?"

"He's right you know. Kai and Sakura have a lot in common. The two of them are a match made in heaven. Two intelligent and good-looking people together… Wow." Takashi gave Syaoran a _you-can't-deny-that_ look.

"Hey, _I'm_ good looking too!" Yes, it was an egotistical thing to say. But Syaoran knew it was the truth. He was neither obese nor scrawny. His years of Chinese martial arts and soccer training had given him a well toned and defined body with at a height of 5"11. With his amber eyes and acne-free skin, and a heart-melting smile (or so he'd been told by some girls) he _knew _that he was just as good-looking as Kai Motomiya, if not, more so. He had turned down his fair share of girls on Valentine's Days because his heart belonged to Sakura Kinomoto and Sakura Kinomoto only.

"Yes, but you're in Third Tier class." Takashi happily pointed out. "You stutter during public speaking. You've never even _been_ to a school function or event. You don't have the slightest idea of what goes on around here, and you're not _popular._"

"That's it!" Syaoran stood up, startling both his friends. "I'm going to ask her out."

"Oh good," Eriol grinned. "Have you finally come to your senses and realize that Meiling Rae is a much better choice for you, school social status-wise?"

"NO!" Syaoran shouted, and got quite annoyed at Eriol's mention of the clingy girl who had made her crush on him quite clear to anyone who would listen. "I meant I'm going to ask Sakura Kinomoto out. To the Winter Festival Dance. Right now."

And before his friends could snap out of their state of intense shock to stop him, Syaoran had already stormed out of the cafeteria.

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"Do you not have any manners?" Kai glared when Syaoran budged in line of the ticket booth. "Get in line!"

"Hi, Sakura," Syaoran ignored him. He did not stutter. He did not blush. He was not nervous. His confidence high was still on full blast. Sakura blinked, somewhat taken aback that her neighbour of seven years, whom she hardly ever talked to, had come up to initiate the first conversation.

"Hi, Syaoran," Sakura said, quickly masking her slight surprise. "If you want a ticket, you do have to line up and wait your –"

"I'm not here to buy tickets," Syaoran said, his eyes never left contact with hers. "Well, not yet anyways."

"Oh, then…?"

"I want to ask you to go to the dance with me."

Silence roared through the hallway. Did Syaoran Li, from Third Tier, just dared to ask Sakura Kinomoto out? _The_ pretty and intelligent Sakura Kinomoto, who everyone assumed would pick Kai Motomiya over Syaoran Li any day of the year?!

"Are you insane?" Kai's sharp voice cut through the silence like a knife. "Now if you're done being a freak, can you please leave?" he rolled his eyes, showing his intolerance.

Syaoran could hear people talking, but he tried his best to block them out. Sakura's answer was all that mattered. His eyes never left hers, and she seemed to understand that he wasn't going to back down until he got a clear answer from her. So she gave him one.

"Syaoran," Sakura said, a light and amused, but not necessarily mean or cruel, smile on her pretty face, "sorry, but I'm not interested."

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"Were you _there?_"

"No, but I heard all about it! Sakura Kinomoto right?"

"_Yes!_ I don't know whether to call him brave, or idiotic!"

"Poor guy! What's his name again?"

"Li. Li…something. That guy! Over there! That's him!"

"Oh – hey, wow, he's cute!"

"I _know_, right?! I would _so_ love to go to the dance with him! Why didn't he ask me?!"

"You're not exactly Sakura Kinomoto."

"Well! He's not exactly Kai Motamiya either! He's in Third Tier!"

Syaoran kept his on the floor as he shuffled from class to class for the rest of the day, trying his best to ignore conversations like the one above. God, how humiliating.

"_Syaoran, sorry, but I'm not interested."_

Those words stung. They really, really did. But now that his confidence high had passed and reality had sunk in, what other answer could he have expected from her, surely?

_Oh no,_ Syaoran froze as he realized that he had to walk pass Sakura's locker everyday in order to get to his. And there she was, properly placing her Biology textbook into her clean and crisp backpack, getting ready to go home.

_And we live in the same direction too! This is going to be one long walk home._

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As usual, he was walking behind her by a good few feet on the way home. They had never talked or walked home together in the past. It was less awkward to walk behind her and pretend that she was walking too fast for him to keep up (even though he can outrun her any day given his athletic abilities) than to walk to beside her and not have any conversation going.

But today, things were going to be different.

"Hi."

Sakura blinked up at him with her forest green eyes. "Oh. It's you again."

"Yes, it's me," Syaoran spoke impatiently. "I want to know…why?"

"Why what?"

"Why aren't you interested?"

"I think you should know the answer to that one," Sakura smiled lightly and continued to walk, leaving him behind again. But Syaoran wouldn't have any of it. He quickly caught up to her again.

"No, I don't know. Even though the First Tier class is full of snobs, I don't believe you're one of them. You're not shallow. There's no way you're not interested just because I'm below you on the school social ladder." He stepped in front of her, silently letting her know that he wanted a proper answer before any of them gets to go home.

"Of course I'm not shallow," Sakura said, her amused smile never leaving her face. "Because if I am, I would have said yes to you today."

"Huh?"

She held his gaze strongly and leaned in closer. So close that she could smell the light scent of his cologne mixed with the clothes softener that Mrs. Li used for her family laundry. Sakura let her eyes closed briefly as she inhaled. Syaoran could feel his cheeks heat up in their proximity.

"If I'm shallow, I would have said yes to you today simply because you're more attractive than Kai on the outside," she said in a soft voice.

He swore his heart stopped beating at that moment. Did she just…_praise _him?!

"But because I'm _not_ shallow, I look at what's on the inside. And seriously? I'm not interested in a guy who apparently doesn't care enough about his education and future and barely passes all his courses every semester because he's not making the effort to do better." Sakura's tone was light and friendly, with just the smallest hint of arrogance. She backed away from Syaoran, her complexion still its usual healthy peach colour, while his was a brighter red. She can see the question in his eyes and answered it before he could ask, "Our mothers talk behind our backs. I'll see you around, Syaoran."

"Waaaait! Wait, wait, wait!" Syaoran called, his voice finally coming back. "Kai is an arrogant jerk who shows no compassion. How is he better than me on the inside?"

"Let's put it this way. Kai is intelligent, full of wits and diligence, and knows where he's going. If it's the end of the world," Sakura spoke, her voice soft but steady, "and there's only you and Kai left, I think I'll have a better chance of survival if I pick Kai to be my partner."

And with that, she left Syaoran standing there to digest her words.

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: Hey guys! What did you think of the story? Please leave a review! Much appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

**Twinkle Starre: **Thanks for the review guys! They were lovely =) I'm sorry that I didn't enable anonymous reviews, I completely didn't know that they were disabled until today!!!!!!!!!!!! Arggh! Hahaha. But yeah, you can leave a review now, even if you don't have a account. So please do!

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**Love to Go**

**Chapter 2**

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"Hi, honey. Would you like a snack?" Nadeshiko asked when she heard the front door clicked open and closed with a soft _bang_.

"No thanks, Mom." Sakura swung her backpack off her shoulders, laid it gently on the floor, and poured herself a glass of cold water.

"Okay," Nadeshiko placed her hands on her hips, "what's the matter with you now?"

Sakura blinked. _How does she do it?! HOW?! _"Nothing."

"You're a terrible liar, but whatever floats your boat." Nadeshiko peeked through the curtains of the kitchen window and noticed that Syaoran was trotting back into his own house across the street. "Oh look! Your friend Syaoran is home too!"

"He's not my friend," Sakura heaved an exasperated sigh at her mother. She didn't understand why her mom always referred to Syaoran as her 'friend'. She knew that her mother knew that the two of them barely exchange the usual 'good morning'. "Today was the first time we talked."

"Such a shame." Nadeshiko tsk'd. "He's such a _nice_ boy."

"I'm not interested in guys who don't care about their education and future and barely passes their courses every semester because they don't make an effort to do better," Sakura spoon fed her mother the same line she gave Syaoran earlier.

"Riggght. So what's stopping you from being interested in Kai? He asked you out quite a few times, if I remember correctly. But you never seem to be interested. But then again, if you're not interested, why do you invite him to come over to study so often?" Nadeshiko asked with a grin, even though she knew the answer to that question already. Sakura hastily busied herself with gulping down her water.

_Sometimes, _Sakura thought, draining her glass and reached for the water jug once more, _it doesn't help to treat your mother as one of your close friends and to have girl-to-girl talks with her. I'll trade Touya for an older sister any day._

"_Honestly_, I swear you get your shyness from your father. _I_ was never shy with boys. It's almost as if you're waiting for --"

"Mo-ooom!" Sakura yelped, choking on her water. "I'm far from being _shy_. Honestly, what kind of person do you think I am? Because I can tell you, I have too much confidence in myself to be _shy._"

"Ever since you turned thirteen, and went into high school, you started looking down on everyone who didn't make First Tier. Like Syaoran." Nadeshiko said pointedly.

"That," Sakura said, "is not true. I look down on him because he doesn't even make an effort. Trust me, Syaoran Li's abilities are _not_ Third Tier at most."

"Really? So why doesn't he try harder?"

"Because," Sakura washed up her glass, picked up her backpack, and started out of the kitchen, "he is an idiot."

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The next morning was bright and sunny for a winter day in Tomoeda, Japan, and Sakura was grateful for the weather when she headed out the door for school, making sure to lock it behind her.

"Good morning!"

Sakura yelped; her forest green eyes widen at the sight of Syaoran Li, standing there _on her front porch_.

"What…are you doing here…?" Sakura pulled her words out of her mouth slowly; too surprised to even care that she wasn't doing a good job of masking her state of shock. Usually, she walked to school _alone_, sometimes bumping into Kai along the way. She certainly never ran into _Syaoran_ even though he lived right across the street from her. This was because as a First Tier student, she had to go to school early every morning to avoid ruining her reputation as a good student and role model.

"I thought we could walk to school together." Syaoran grinned. "Come on. I thought about what you said yesterday."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. And you were right. So starting from this moment on, I am going to tell you that I'm not going to give up on you." Syaoran stepped in the front of her, blocking her path.

"_What?!_ When did I suggested you do something like that?!" Sakura asked, bewildered.

"You said you're not interested in guys who don't care about their future and don't make the effort to do better. So I'm going to show you that I do care about my future, and I'm going to make the effort to do better," Syaoran said determinedly, a grin on his face.

"By not giving up on me?" Sakura raised an eyebrow doubtfully at him. "How does that even tie in with caring more about your future and making the effort to do better?"

"Of course it ties in," Syaoran said, as if he couldn't believe that someone as intelligent as her couldn't see the connection. He looked her in the eyes and said his next words with the utmost sincerity. "It ties in perfectly. I want my future to be with you. By not giving up on you, I show that I care about my future. By putting in the effort to pursue you, I am making the effort to do better."

Sakura blinked. Honestly, she didn't know whether to feel touched or laugh. On one hand, she was impressed by his persistence in chasing after what he truly desired. God know she never had the courage to do that. On the other hand, he completely missed the point of her speech yesterday.

"Syaoran," Sakura said, as calmly as possible, "you're completely missing the point. What I meant yesterday is that you should aim higher in life."

Now it was his turn to raise a doubtful brow at her. "And pursuing the girl I've been in love with for three years, who also happens to be the most sought after girl in school, isn't the high aim?"

_He's been in love with me for…three years…?!_ Sakura's mind tried to wrap itself around that fact, while remaining cool and collected on the outside. _How does he do it? How can he just confess something so personal just like __**that**__? Tons of people never had the courage to even compose a coherent sentence in front of the ones they harbour a crush on…yet Syaoran Li had accomplished the impossible, and making it look so easy too_.

"…Sakura?" Syaoran waved his hand in front of her face, snapping her back to reality.

"I meant academically! I meant you should aim higher academically!" Sakura snapped, feeling frustrated all of a sudden.

"Shouldn't I aim higher in life for things that are _important_ to me?"

"Yes, but –"

"Right. And you're important to me."

_He did it __**again! **__It's already the third time this morning he confessed to me! How does he do it?!_

"If you want to have a good quality of life in the future, you'll need to have a job you like, with a decent income. In order to do that, you need to get into and graduate from university. And in order to do _that_, you need to get extracurricular points and good report cards in high school while you still can!" Sakura snapped, angry that he just didn't seem to get it. "Do you even _understand_ what I'm saying here?"

"I think my –"

"—And don't say something like you think your future is going to be good as long as I'm with you," Sakura interrupted. Syaoran shut his mouth, a guilty look on his handsome features. Sakura paused for breath. "People should have more than one goal in life. You shouldn't…focus everything on relationships. You need to have other goals to strive for as well. We should be on a quest to continuously better who we are."

Glancing at him softly, Sakura started to stride off alone towards the school. But before she even took five steps away from him, he caught up again.

"So you mean like, I should aim for the Honour Roll?"

"Yes!" Sakura whirled around to face him, relief sketched upon her beautiful features that he finally got it…somewhat, anyways. "That would be a good start."

"Okay…so if I make the next Honour Roll, you'll go to the dance with me?"

Sakura froze. That wasn't exactly the deal she had in mind. But whatever. At least he finally understood what she had been ranting on about yesterday after school (and this morning).

"Maybe," she said slowly, all the while wondering if her reply would come back to haunt her.

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"What's up with you?" Tomoyo Daidouji asked curiously as Sakura sank down in the seat next to her.

"Nothing," Sakura said nonchalantly. She didn't feel like bringing up the run-in she had with Syaoran this morning.

"Yeah right," Tomoyo snorted. "You're pissed off. I can so tell. So, come on. What's up? Does this have anything to do with that Li guy from Third Tier?"

Sakura's eyes boggled as her head snapped to face Tomoyo. "How did _you_ hear about it? You weren't even in school yesterday!"

"Yeah, don't rub it in. The _one day_ I went to visit my sick grandmother, interesting stuff happens. So what, are you two like dating now?"

"No!" Sakura said incredulously. "Is that what's going around? That he and I are…_dating?_"

"No, I don't think so. But I just thought you two have some sort of…thing." Tomoyo grinned, flashing her perfectly straight teeth in a charming smile.

"What _thing_? There is no _thing_!" Sakura denied, feeling annoyance bubbled inside her from the gut.

"Well for one, you're totally upset about this. And you're hardly ever upset. You're like, the calmest person I've ever met. And this Syaoran Li guy…" Tomoyo titled her head and looked at Sakura curiously. Sakura shifted uncomfortably in her seat, feeling very much like a specimen on a slide in the biology lab.

"…this Syaoran Li guy…what?"

"This Syaoran Li guy gets a rise out of you. You know…arouse your anger…and anger is a feeling, sooooo…who knows what other _feelings_ he might be able to get out of you, eh?" Tomoyo winked mischievously.

"I am _NOT_ –" Sakura stopped herself. No, if she yelled now, she'd just be proving Tomoyo's point. "Never mind!"

"Good morning, ladies," Kai's smooth masculine voice said charmingly as he slid into his usual seat in front of Sakura.

"Morning, Kai," Tomoyo replied politely.

"Hey, Kai," Sakura smiled in return. "How were the ticket sales from yesterday?"

"Pretty good," Kai nodded approvingly. "I got the numbers from Naoko at my locker just now. The tickets this year are going faster than we intentionally planned." He looked as if he couldn't decide whether he should be happy that ticket sales were going well or be upset that his original expectations of ticket sales were off.

"Should we make rounds to all the other Tiers before first period then? To let them know that they better hurry if they want to go to the dance?"

"You know, that's an excellent idea, Sakura," Kai grinned a genuine smile at her, the one he reserved just for Sakura (or so Tomoyo had pointed out several times to her friend). "Here, Sakura. I got this for you this morning."

"Vitamin C drops?" Sakura picked up the vibrantly coloured packet curiously.

"Mmhmm. We're heading towards the middle of winter semester now. You always get a cold around this time of year, remember?" Kai smiled tenderly at her. "Vitamin C helps strengthen your immune system."

"Oh, thank you, Kai. You're really thoughtful," Sakura opened the packette, popped one in her mouth and put it away after offering one to Tomoyo, who turned it down.

"Only when it comes to you, Sakura." Kai said softly.

"Shall we go make the rounds now?" Sakura asked, tactfully avoiding any awkward silences that were typical in such particular situations.

"Definitely," Kai nodded, getting back on topic. "Now would be a good time."

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Meanwhile, Syaoran wasn't having the time of his life back in his homeroom either. As if it wasn't bad enough that everyone was snickering as he walked in. But no, he had to deal with a certain admirer of his too.

"Syaoran-kun! Say it isn't so! Why did you do it?! Why?!" Meiling Rae wailed, her palms slammed flat against the hard, smooth, wooden surface of his desk, causing him to look up from his chemistry textbook. Syaoran wasn't sure if she meant why did he have to love Sakura, or why did he have to make a fool of himself yesterday by confessing. But knowing Meiling, he could bet that she probably meant both.

"M-Meiling, listen, it's not what you've heard—" Syaoran started, inching a little backward in his seat to avoid the aura of anger he could feel from the raven-haired young woman.

"So, you _didn't_ confess to Sakura Kinomoto yesterday in front of the cafeteria where she was selling tickets to the Winter Festival Dance?" Meiling challenged, her maroon eyes flashed with hurt.

"Well, no, that part is true. B-but, um, we're not dating o-o-r anything—"

"You mean she _rejected_ you?!" Meiling gasped, as if he had hit her. Eriol gave a big horselaugh from his seat.

"Of course she did. What, you didn't actually think she'll say something like 'oh, Syaoran, love of my life! Kiss me!' did you?!"

Syaoran glared. "Thanks a lot, Eriol."

"Well, she _should_ have!" Meiling said angrily to Eriol, as if she couldn't decide whether to be angry that Syaoran professed his love to Sakura or that Sakura rejected Syaoran, who Meiling thought was _the_ most perfect guy who ever walked the earth. "It's what _I _would have done!" Suddenly, her eyes caught sight of the textbook Syaoran had opened on his desk.

"Why are you reading your chemistry book? We're in homeroom."

"Well, er, you see…I think I might try to aim for the next Honour Roll…" Syaoran said slowly. Bad answer.

"WHAT?! WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!" Eriol stared at him, bug-eyed.

"HONOUR ROLL! HE SAID HONOUR ROLL!" Takashi chimed in excitedly.

"What?! Who's getting on the Honour Roll?" Chiharu, Takashi's girlfriend, asked all excited, as she took her seat next to Takashi. "Someone from our class?! Who is it?!"

"Syaoran! Syaoran's getting on the Honour Roll!" Takashi replied his girlfriend with enthusiasm.

"Oh, my goodness! Are you really, Syaoran? That will be so cool! Nobody ever from Third Tier ever got on the Honour Roll before! I think the last kid who did that graduated three years ago! But he doesn't count because that was like, prehistoric history." Chiharu blether.

"You guys…" Syaoran mutter in embarrassment, as he grew aware that his other classmates were now snickering.

"Hey, Li. What are you trying to prove?" a fellow student hollered from the front of the room.

"Nothing! What's wrong with having a higher goal in life?!" Syaoran grumbled in reply.

"You? On the Honour Roll? Seriously, good one, Li. April's Fool Day is over."

"Yeah, you should just stick with being an athlete, Syaoran and leave the intelligent stuff to Kai Motamiya," a girl in the front row said, her eyes becoming dreamy as she got lost in her imagination of the First Tier heartthrob with his soft midnight ebony hair, steel grey eyes, broad shoulders and arrogant, yet undeniably charming, smile.

Syaoran stood up from his seat. "Okay, all of you just shut up!"

The class fell silent.

Syaoran glared. "I'm sick of all this talk about how great and awesome people like Kai Motamiya are! He's just some stuck-up snob who thinks he's better than everyone else. But you know what? He's NOT the best, personality-wise _or_ academically. I bet there are tons of people out there who are way better than he will _ever_ be. So I don't know why the hell all you girls practically kiss the ground he walks on. And all of you _guys_ who think Kai Motamiya is a million times your worth? You all need to stop looking down on yourself. What happened to your self-confidence huh? What happened to your _pride?! _Why are all of you just sitting here simply admiring someone who is arrogant and stuck up instead of trying harder yourselves? So he's on the Honour Roll every semester. Big deal! Have you all forgotten that he's in First Tier? He's _supposed_ to get on the Honour Roll; it's nothing special! And you know what? If _he_ can do it, then _so can I, or my name isn't Syaoran Li!_"

For a while, nobody spoke. Syaoran noticed that some people were looking away guiltily as they realized they had indeed lost their self-esteem and pride. Others were oogling at him with awe and admiration (well okay, only the girls were doing this). Others were staring at him like he was insane. Terada-sensei, who had happened to walk in at the beginning of his little speech had both of his eyebrows raised to a whole new level.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, slicing through the silence in the Third Tier classroom. Everyone turned his or her heads. It was Kai and Sakura.

Syaoran stared at them, dumbfounded. Oh shit, had they heard his speech too? Well, so what if they had? Let them!

"We're here to let you all know that the tickets for the Winter Festival Dance sold pretty well yesterday, and that there are only a few left. So if you want to go, don't hesitate to get one!" Sakura informed the Third Tier class chirpily, before Kai can get a word in. "That's all!"

"Nice speech, Li. Let's hope you're not just all talk, shall we?" Kai smirked as he and Sakura turned around to walk out the door again. But before they were completely out, Syaoran swore that Sakura caught his eye…and gave him an approving smile that completely melted his heart.

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_Okay, so maybe the speech today wasn't such a good idea_.

Syaoran tugged at his hair gently as he concentrated on his Japanese homework. It turned out he was quite good with numbers and calculations, and completed both his math and chemistry homework in a jiffy. Biology was a little bit more of a headache but with some intense concentration, he managed to survive that without much damage to his brain cells. But Japanese homework?! Never! But he knew that if he wanted to get on the winter semester Honour Roll, which is out right before the Winter Festival Dance, he'd need to get at least four A's and three B+'s. _Minimal_. Of course, people like Kai would never settle for anything less than an A. But he would be happy to get on the Honour Roll at _all_ at this rate.

_Okay, there is no way I can even get a C+ in Japanese if I keep going on like this,_ Syaoran thought, leaning back on his chair comfortingly. _I need a strategy…I need some sort of a plan…I need – _

"Syaoran, I'm made some extra strawberry tarts for the Kinomotos, so I'm going across the street for a little while. Can you keep an eye on the soup and don't let it boil over?" his mother's voice called from downstairs.

Syaoran sat up straighter in his seat, a new light of hope gleaming in his amber eyes. _Bingo!_

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Five minutes later he was standing outside Sakura's house, his finger shaking as he rang the door bell, a box of strawberry tarts in one hand…and his backpack of textbooks and binders on his broad shoulders.

_There is no way she will turn down my request with Mom's strawberry tarts in hand_.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Sakura's melodic voice from inside the house. Looking around, he realized that the window to the living room was open, and that was how her voice was drifting to his ears.

"Touya, go answer the door," he heard Sakura said childishly to her older brother.

"No, _you_ go answer it," Touya replied in a semi-gruff voice to his baby sister.

"No, I'm watching TV."

"Hello, and what am I doing? _Not_ watching TV? I don't think so!"

"Well, somebody has to go answer it!" Sakura said frustratingly. "Whoever it is will be gone by the time the commerical break comes on!"

"Mom will answer it. _Mooooom! Someone's at the doooooooooor!" _Touya hollered.

"Mom's not home, genius. It's Cooking Night Tuesday at the community centre."

"Oh, right. Fine, I'll go answer it! Lazy ass. Stop watching TV and go do your homework!"

"I'm don't _have_ any! Oh, look, the TV show's done. I'm going up to my room. Bye!"

"Well, if the TV show's done, why don't _you_ go answer the door?! Hey, come back here! Okay, fine, I'll do it this time, but _don't count on it every time!"_

Syaoran could hear Touya's footsteps getting closer and closer to the door. Panic rose in his chest. He knew Sakura's older brother, Touya Kinomoto. Well, not personally. But he did had a run-in with him once, and left quite a bad impression. There was no way Touya would let him inside the house. _Ever_. He'll most likely take the strawberry tarts...and then shut the door in his face.

Syaoran scrambled away from the front door and found a good hiding spot by the side of the beautiful stone house. His breathing rate rose when he peaked around to see Touya's frustrated face when nobody was there when he finally swung the grand oak doors open.

"Stupid pranksters," he grumbled before slamming the door shut again. Oh great. How can talk to Sakura _now?_ Syaoran glanced around the beautiful yard that Fujitaka and Nadeshiko had spent time on whenever they had a romantic hour or two alone in the middle of the day.

_Hmm…maybe this would work out after all…_

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Sakura lazily turned on her computer, her fingers twirling a strand of her silky red auburn hair as she thought of Syaoran Li's speech today. He had guts; she'd give him that. And while he could be annoying sometimes, she had to admit that he was an interesting character. He wasn't like anybody she had ever met. He was always so unexpected, and the things he did always seemed to be out of the realms of what she could foresee. He was very different from Kai, whom she could always read like a book. But then again, she could read everyone like a book. Except for Syaoran Li, that is.

And she certainly did not foresee the thing Syaoran did next. And that thing was to climb up the cherry blossom tree (though currently, in the middle of winter, was bare of any flowers) a few feet away from her bedroom window with a box of sweet strawberry tarts and a backpack full of books, chucking pebbles on the glass window, hoping to get her attention so that he could beg her to tutor him in Japanese.

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**Twinkle Starre:** Thank you for those of you who put me and/or this story on alert too! Greatly appreciated it! But it'll be even better if you left a review, because then I can tell what I'm doing right and what I'm not doing right.

Hint: that conversation Sakura had with her mom? Hmm...if all things go according to plan, then what Nadeshiko said is very important to this story hehehe. Just a little hint/foreshadowing.


	3. Chapter 3

**Love To Go**

**Chapter 3**

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"What are you doing?!" Sakura cried, aghast at the sight in front of her window.

"Sakura! Can you tutor me in Japanese? I swear that's the only subject I need help on! Come on, pleaseeee? I have strawberry tarts!" Syaoran waggled the box of strawberry tarts tantalizingly.

Sakura continued to stare at him, astounded. She was trying to tie in the connections in her brain. In her mind, asking someone to be your tutor, climbing up a tree, and waving baked goods around in the air simply did not compute.

"I really, really need your help! I need at least a B in Japanese to get on the Honour Roll! Pleaseeee, Sakura?" Syaoran continued on ranting.

Too many questions were floating around in Sakura's head and she was too stunned to figure out which one she should put forth.

"Why are you up in a tree?!" That was probably the most obvious one.

"Your brother probably wouldn't let me in the house. Now, will you tutor me?"

"Get down from there!"

"Will you tutor me?"

"No! Go away!" Sakura freaked out. "I mean…can't you just climb down first?!"

"It's kind of hard to," Syaoran confessed sheepishly, scratching his head gently. "I mean, I have this big bag of books and this box of strawberry tart…oh here, I got an idea. Catch!"

Without giving her much warning, Syaoran shrugged off his backpack and hurled it towards the open window. Using her quick reflexes, Sakura managed to hug the heavy backpack without letting it plough her over. But it did slightly knock the wind out of her. Heaving a light gasp, Sakura settled Syaoran's backpack down with a scowl. _Stupid Syaoran Li. Always making trouble for me_. She glanced back out the window, but he was already gone. She dashed over and lunged her head out the window. He was down by the tree trunk, a grin upon his handsome face as he silently pointed to the side of the house. Winking at her, he dashed.

_The backdoor,_ Sakura thought with frustration, knowing what he had been gesturing to.

_**.o.**_

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"I can't believe you—"

"Shhhh!" Syaoran shushed with a smile when Sakura flung the backdoor open. He slipped inside the house and locked the door behind him. "Let's go back to your room! Come on!" He grabbed her by the wrist and led her back to her own room.

"Okay, just _what_ in the world do you think you were doing?! Climbing up that tree like that with this weight of a bag, _and_ baked goods? What, do you not value your limbs?!" Sakura exasperated loudly as soon as the door to her room closed shut.

"Were you worried about me?" Syaoran grinned cheekily. "Awww…"

"Shut up! I was not!" Sakura fumed. "I just didn't want you to bother me! And give me those!" She snatched the box of strawberry tarts from his hands and took a bite out of one, all the while still glaring at him.

"Anyways, as much as I like to flirt with you, we really should get started. My Japanese homework won't finish itself, you know." Syaoran began to rootle around in his backpack, which laid on the soft carpet of Sakura's bedroom in a lump.

"Uh…I never agreed to tutor you." Sakura reminded.

"Oh, come on! Pretty please?"

"Why should I?"

Syaoran stood up and sighed. "Sakura…look, I know that ever since that day I've confessed to you outside the cafeteria, you've been through a lot of stress from all the rumours and teasing going on around at school about us. But…well, I just want you to know that I was serious about what I said. I mean, I can understand why you don't want to go out with me. I'm just some random guy from Third Tier who's not as intelligent or as debonair as Kai, so why would you even _think_ about someone like me? I –"

"You think I rejected you because you get bad grades. Because I go for guys who are intellectual and because grades are everything?" It wasn't so much a question as it was a statement. Sakura set the box of strawberry tarts aside.

"Well…yeah. Isn't that what you said?"

Sakura's gaze was on the ground. Slowly she picked her head up to stare up at him. "Syaoran?

"Yes?" He asked hopefully.

"Sometimes, I wonder if you even listen to a word I say. Just get out."

"…What?"

"Get out!" She put both her hands on his chest and pushed him out the door of her bedroom. Syaoran was too astonished by her suddenly anger to stop her. She threw his backpack out after him. "And if you want to live to see the dawn of tomorrow, I suggest you take the backdoor before Touya sees you coming from my room!"

"Sakura, wait!"

"No! You. Get. Out. Now!"

"Saku—"

Sakura slammed the door of her bedroom door close and leaned back against it, trying to calm down her heavy breathing. She heard him shuffling outside for a few minutes before finally realizing that she wasn't going to change her mind about reopening the door and left.

Honestly, when it came to Syaoran Li…she didn't know whether she should laugh or cry.

_**.o.**_

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"Sakura, are we starting tomorrow after school?" Kai asked at lunch the next day as he slid into the seat next to her in the Fourth Tier classroom.

Sakura nodded. She knew what he was talking about. It was that time of year again – winter semester final exams. She and Kai had been studying together ever since they were thirteen. It was no doubt that Kai was arrogant, but Sakura couldn't deny the fact that he was a good study partner. Even though he had romantic feelings towards her, he had never let those feelings get in the way of a good friendship and partnership. He was not the type of guy who used studying together as an excuse to be near her so that he could ogle her. No, both Sakura and Kai could see the mutual benefit of being partners at school. Sakura liked to study with Kai. It was both fun and productive because he worked the same way she did and they knew each other's study habits inside out.

"My house tomorrow after school?"

Kai smiled softly at her. "Sounds great to me."

Sakura grinned back before flipping the Fourth Tier biology textbook open. She and Kai were part of a lunchtime tutoring program – it was an extracurricular thing where Fourth and Fifth Tier students could come in during lunchtime twice a week and get homework help from First and Second Tier students. Sakura's tutee was a shy boy in her own year in the Fourth Tier named Kenji Sato. He was sweet and tried his best at every subject. However, he wasn't a naturally bright student. In fact, his teacher considered bumping him down to the Fifth Tier. However, ever since Sakura started working with him, his grades had improved a lot.

"Hey, Sakura. Guess what? I got a 60 on my biology test today!" Kenji grinned ear to ear.

"Wow! Kenji, that's awesome!" Sakura beamed happily. "That's a major improvement from your last biology test score!"

"Yeah, a 45," Kenji winced. "Don't remind me. I know that a 60 isn't great…I mean, it's a C, but—"

"Kenji, you gave your best effort. That's all that matters. I'm really proud of you." Sakura said truthfully with a sincere smile.

"Really?" Kenji blushed. "Y-y-you are?"

"Of course I am!"

Out of the corner of her emerald green eyes, Sakura could see Kai rolling his eyes at her conversation with Kenji as he was waiting for his own tutee to show up. Obviously a 60 is a score to be ashamed of if you were in First Tier. But it was undeniably a drastic and tremendous improvement for Kenji. Sakura tried her best to ignore the arrogant and intolerable expressions on Kai face, which she sure Kenji also noticed. She hoped Kenji could ignore Kai.

"Um…Sakura?"

"Yes, Kenji?"

"L-listen, I heard about what happened with Syaoran Li. About how he confessed to you."

Sakura shifted her gaze. God, did everyone hear about it? How embarrassing. Why couldn't her personal life be discreet anymore? "Yeah, everyone probably heard of it by now."

"Y-y-yeah…and I was thinking…you have to admit that he was very, um, brave."

"I suppose it did take guts," Sakura smiled despite of her annoyance over the whole Syaoran fiasco. Why was Kenji praising Syaoran? _Syaoran Li better not have put Kenji up to this!_

"And it was after that incident that I realized that I…I have a lot of respect for him." Kenji continued, not meeting Sakura's gaze.

Sakura laughed. "Respect? For Syaoran? Kenji, you don't even know him!"

"Yeah, but god knows I never had the courage to confess." Kenji lifted his head up to meet her in the eye.

"Yeah…I-I never had such a courage either…" Sakura muttered, and all of a sudden she started to grasp a sense of the same respect Kenji had for Syaoran.

"I mean, I used to think it's impossible for me to even _talk_ properly in front of the girl I like…just like how I thought it's impossible for me to improve my biology mark." Kenji went on, starting to sound like he was babbling.

"But Kenji, you did improve your score. See, it wasn't impossible after all!"

"R-r-right. So that's why I thought maybe confessing isn't all that impossible e-e-either…" Kenji mumbled. He weakly held Sakura's gaze. "Sakura, would you um…like to…um…havedinnerwithmetonight?"

No denying he said the last part in a rush. But Sakura heard him nonetheless. She was about to reply but Kenji interrupted.

"I-I-I mean, I don't really expect you to say yes or anything. I mean someone as smart as you would…would never…I mean…I just…I'm not asking you to be my girlfriend or anything even…even though I…I really like you but asking you to be my girlfriend is just too out of the question…but – but I just wanted to have…have…I mean to at least have dinner with you – if that's okay with you I mean. And I totally understand if it's—"

"Would you shut _up_ already?"

At this rude comment, Kenji shut up immediately, a heavy blush upon his face. His gaze immediately shot downwards.

"Kai!" Sakura scolded her friend with a slight glare, giving him a _how-could-you-say-that-kind-of-thing_ look.

"What?" Kai bite back scathingly. "It's bad enough that he even had the nerve to ask you out, but does he have to natter on? At least Syaoran Li knew when to shut it."

"I think," Sakura said somewhat coldly to Kai, "you should pay attention to your tutee now."

"Sakura…it's okay. Just forget it. I hope you still want to be my tutor for –"

"Kenji, I'd love to have dinner with you tonight." Sakura interrupted with a gentle smile.

"_What?_" Kai gaped, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Sakura, are you insane?"

Sakura shrugged off his grasp. "I'm perfectly sane, thank you very much."

"Y-y-y-you really would?" Kenji seemed to be unable to understand this reply as well.

"Yes, I would," Sakura's melodic laugh floated in the air. "How about that Chance Café?"

"Th-that would be g-great." Kenji stuttered, his blush never left his face.

Kai glared. This was not happening. Sakura would never accept a date with someone in the Fourth Tier. It was just…no.

_This is all Syaoran Li's fault._

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"Syaoran Li."

Syaoran's head snapped up at the call of his name. "Who called me?"

"Wasn't us," Eriol shrugged. Syaoran looked around the cafeteria confusedly. Eventually, he caught sight of Kai Motamiya, seething with anger as he approached Syaoran's lunch table.

"What do you want?" Syaoran glared.

"You! You've practically ruined Sakura's life, do you know that?" Kai's voice was laced with anger as he leaned forward on the table, his grey eyes covered with fury. "You've started some crazy trend, and now _every_ pathetic, no good idiot is asking her out."

"Hey! You take that back" Meiling stood up suddenly from her seat. "My Syaoran-kun is far from a pathetic, no good idiot!"

Kai ignored her. "First it was you. Now it's Kenji Sato from Fourth Tier. For god's sake, soon everyone will get into the act."

"Hey, if Kenji wants to ask her out, that's _his_ business!" Eriol defended Syaoran. "It wasn't Syaoran's fault!"

"Sato said you _inspired_ him to do such a daring act. Look what you've done, Li. Are you happy now? Now that Sakura's going out with some stupid Fourth Tier loser?"

"Wait, WHAT?" Now it was Syaoran's turn to stand up. "She said _yes?!_"

"Yes, she said yes! They are having dinner tonight! Now if you _really_ care about Sakura, you would just leave her alone and let her overcome this havoc you've burdened her with." With one last icy glare, Kai turned around and left the cafeteria. But Syaoran couldn't care less about the threats Kai had dished out. He was too stunned.

_She said yes…_

"Kai! Wait!" Syaoran bolted from his seat and chased after the First Tier genius, who ignored his holler. "KAI! Why did Sakura say yes?"

Kai stopped walking, but did not turn around to acknowledge Syaoran. His fists were clenched at his sides. "I don't freaking _know_ ok?! I don't _know_ why she would agree. I just know Sato never would have worked up the nerve to ask her out if you hadn't pave the path for him."

"Well, I'm determined to find out why," Syaoran said with fortitude. "And I'll need reinforcements. So I just want to know…are we in this together or not?"

Kai gave a laugh as if it was the funniest joke he had ever heard. "Me? Work together with _you_? Just who do you think you are? That you're up to par to work with me?"

"Look," Syaoran sighed. "I care about Sakura. And I know you do too, ok? Don't deny it. You know that you can't carry this out by yourself. Face it, Motamiya. We're in the same boat."

For a moment, Kai stayed silent, as if he was seriously considering Syaoran's words. However, his reply was as icy as ever.

"I'll never be on the same boat as you, Syaoran Li. Not now, not ever."

_**.o.**_

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"I—I had a great time tonight, Sakura." Kenji blushed.

"You know, I did too. Thank you for a lovely evening, Kenji," Sakura smiled as Kenji walked her up to her front porch.

"I should be the one thanking you for giving me a chance to take you out…" Kenji mumbled.

"Kenji…I was honest when I said I had a good time," Sakura started off gently. "But I…I really don't think a romantic relationship would work out between us. I'm sorry but…I don't think we're The One for each other. I hope you'll still want to be my friend."

"Of _course_ I'd still want to be your friend, Sakura!" Kenji looked up abruptly and hastily assured her. "I mean, you're one of the nicest people I've ever met! Nobody ever had the patience to tutor me the way you did…and…I guess I know deep down inside that a romantic relationship wouldn't work out between us. But, you know…I just wanted to see what it's like to go on at least one official date with you."

"Oh, Kenji, you're a really sweet guy." Sakura gave a soft melodic laugh. "And thank you so much for understanding. Hug?"

Kenji grinned wrapped his arm around Sakura to accept her hug. "Good night, Sakura. See you around at school?"

"You'll be seeing me on a weekly basis," Sakura grinned back. "Don't think I'll go easy on you during our tutoring session just because you had a tremendous improvement."

Kenji laughed. "I didn't expect you to."

"Alright then. Good night, Kenji."

Giving one last wave, Sakura stayed on her porch until Kenji was out of sight. She dug her hand into her purse and fished around for her keys. Feeling the cool metal pieces, she slipped it into the lock with ease and turned. However, just as she was about to turn the doorknob, a hand clamped down on her right shoulder.

Sakura yelped, thinking that it was a robber. But then her gaze fell into contact with the gaze of a pair of chocolate amber eyes, and she felt herself letting out a big breath of relief, and her heart rate calmed down from its initial scare.

"What are you doing here? How long were you snooping around for?" she eyed Syaoran with mistrust.

"Not very long. I just dashed across the street when I saw Kenji left through my window." Syaoran said. "I came over to ask you…why did you go out with him?"

"I went out with him because he is sweet." Sakura said simply.

"…That's it?!" Syaoran asked, bewildered. Then he glared at her. "You went out with him because he was _sweet?_ What happened to the whole I-only-go-for-intelligent-guys thing? You gave me the idea that you would be interested in me if I'm able to prove myself academically, and then you turn around and went on a date with someone who's in Fourth Tier. Can you be more contradicting? Have you been _playing _me all along? What, were you thinking, _oh, that Syaoran Li could never get on the Honour Roll, so by telling him that he must get on it in order for me to even consider him is a good method to keep him away indefinitely_? You know, I always thought you were some princess…a beautiful, brilliant, kind, sincere and caring person. But I guess you're not a princess after all, are you?"

Sakura felt a tingle shot up her spine at his words. And no, not a romantic spark kind of tingle. It was more of a chilling tingle, one from a horror story, or when someone confronted his or her worst fear.

_That's right. I'm never the princess, am I? _Sakura whirled around and glared at him. "You listen to me, Syaoran Li, and you listen good. I have never said I rejected you because I consider you to be less intelligent than me. I rejected you because you don't live up to your potential. Kenji, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of you. He works hard. He strives for the best until the very end. I should know, I've been tutoring him this whole semester. You, on the other hand, are bright, but you don't make the effort to do better. You _settled_ for Third Tier, Syaoran. Third Tier didn't choose you…you chose _it_…when you had every potential in the world to be in First. I told you on the first day that I don't want a guy who doesn't make the effort to do better; the type who is talented, but doesn't strive to be the best that he can be because he is willing to settle for something less than the best."

Without saying another word, Sakura swung her front door open and slammed it behind her. Sakura leaned against her door, her breathing heavy. She could feel the rage bubbling itself inside her chest, threatening to burst. No, she needed to calm down. Definitely needed to calm down.

From the living room, she could hear Touya letting out a strangled scream.

"Mo—oom! I thought I told you to burn that picture! Why is it still here?!"

"Aw, but sweetie, you looked so adorable!" Nadeshiko giggled, and Fujitaka let out a hearty laugh as well.

"Why do you always keep embarrassing pictures of me?! I was only six! I didn't know any better!"

"It's not just you, darling. Here's one of Sakura! Look, isn't she such a cutie pie?!" Nadeshiko gushed. "I _made_ that witch costume!"

Wait, what?! Sakura stiffened, and stood up straighter. _No, no, no!_ She quickly marched into the living room and snatched the photo from her mother's hands.

"Mo—oom! I thought I told you to burn this picture!" Sakura wailed hopelessly, mirroring her brother's previous words. She glanced down at the picture. It was taken when she was twelve, when her seventh grade class put on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs for parents' night at the local elementary school. The picture, though taken five years ago, was still vibrant in its colour. Class 7A proudly stood in their full costumes, all of the cast and backstage crew smiled with big, childish grins. Sakura hated this picture. It reminded her too much of how she got cast to be the Wicked Witch.

"I remember you bawled your eyes out that day when the casting list went up," Touya smirked.

Sakura punched him in the arm. Hard. "I was twelve! I didn't want to play the Wicked Witch! Heck, I didn't even audition for the Wicked Witch!"

"Duh," Touya rolled his eyes. "Nobody does! Although if you ask me, I don't think not being cast as Snow White was much of a loss."

Sakura glanced down at the picture again, this time running her fingers across it wistfully. Her mind unexpectedly drifted back to Syaoran's words earlier.

_You know, I always thought you were some princess…a beautiful, brilliant, kind, sincere and caring person. But I guess you're not a princess after all, are you?_

"Mom, can I keep this picture? I…want to put it in my room."

Nadeshiko exchanged questioning looks with her husband.

"I thought you hate this picture, Sakura." Fujitaka asked, a smile on his lips. "Why the sudden interest to treasure it in your room?"

"You're not going to secretly tear it into shreds are you?" Nadeshiko eyed her daughter with slight mistrust.

"No!" Sakura exclaimed. "Of course not!"

"Well," Nadeshiko said thoughtfully, "I suppose you can. Not that it matters…I printed out several copies of that picture, even if you do tear that one. Look!" Her mother flipped the next page in the family photo album, and Sakura could only stare in disbelief at just how many copies there were.

"Riiight…well, um, I'll be going now." Sakura dashed from the living room and made a beeline for her room. Once inside, she flopped down on her bed with a sigh, and realized how tired she actually was. Looking up at the ceiling, Sakura held the photo up high, with her arm stretched out in the air as she rested her sore back. She scanned the photo again.

_I wonder what it's like to be the princess…for once in my life._

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**Twinkle Starre:** Hey guys! THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE REVIEW!! I LOVE YOU ALL!! My goal is to reach somewhere between 85 - 90 reviews with this chapter. Think you readers can help make that possible? Hehehe!!

Now to answer some questions that were asked:

1) They are 17 years old in this story - grade 12, last year of high school.

2) Hmm...Kai. I wouldn't say he's evil, but I wouldn't say he is nice. He definitely is an arrogant person though lol because he knows his own abilities and intelligence, but he also has a good sense of common morals, so he's not evil or twisted; though he's not above being mean and insensitive from time to time. And no, he definitely doesn't require/receive tutoring from Sakura. They just study together. Kai is truly a genius all on his own. No secrets. Except for maybe really, really good DNA hahaha!

3) Okay, this wasn't really a question, but I do want to clarify that Sakura isn't prejudice against people with lower grades. She admires those who make the most of whatever potential they have, like Kai and Kenji, and thinks Syaoran definitely has more potential than he shows. I've been trying to stress this point, because in the first chapter she did say she doesn't like guys who doesn't **_make the effort to do better_** and she told her mom that Syaoran's potentials aren't Third Tier at most. But from the reviews, I guess I didn't do as good a job of getting the point across as I hoped hahaha! So why does Sakura think Syaoran is the type who has talent but doesn't use it? Well, if I tell you that, I'd ruin the story haha!!

Hint/foreshadowing: Princesses are very important. So is what Touya said. Any guesses??


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